Violet
She answered without looking at . "Oh! He collapsed not long after he brought you inside." She paused and sighed. "Poor thing ate nearly everything I had in the house. But he is deep asleep now."
My eyes widened. "What?!"
She nodded. "Hmm, hmm. He devoured it all—I had never seen anyone eat that much and so fast—and then he just dropped right there."
Her expression shifted into sothing between amusent and concern.
"Scared half to death. But he woke up a few hours later and imdiately insisted he needed to go out. Said he had to replace what he’d taken. And let tell you—" She laughed again, shaking her head. "I have never seen so much at in my life! It’s like he knew he was going to eat out of the house and planned ahead. I am not even sure there is enough space in my freezer room to keep it all..."
I stared at her, too stunned to respond.
What was she saying?
Rowan had collapsed?
But he had seed fine before I...
The realization made my hollow stomach clench harder.
Did this an he hadn’t eaten anything and just carried straight here?
For over a week?
Close to two weeks of him not eating and sleeping?
I had been so focused on trying to outlast him... I never expected it would backfire this way.
He had endured all that and still carried here?
I shook my head.
’No, that isn’t possible. He would surely have stopped to rest and eat at so point while—’
"He was desperate." Her voice was low and quiet and it felt as if she had been reading my mind. "Frantic, really. Said you’d collapsed and he didn’t know what else to do. That you hadn’t eaten properly in over a week, and he had been running without stop to get to the nearest pack until he found ." She paused and then stood up, bundling the soiled cloth and broken bowl pieces in her hands.
She smiled faintly. "He looked so helpless. Saying sothing about how he couldn’t get you to wake up and didn’t have fire to cook food either..."
My heart sank.
’Stupid. So stupid. Look what you did.’
So he had carried here.
Fed himself enough to function.
And imdiately went out to repay the kindness of this stranger who had taken us in.
My chest tightened with sothing I didn’t want to na.
The woman sighed. "My granddaughter will be back soon. Sorry for taking so much ti, I’ll go get so more food from the kitchen. You must be starving!" She laughed a little as she said it, but there was genuine concern in her voice.
The aching in my empty stomach intensified when she left.
He really had not eaten anything all that ti...
Even before then, he had just walked, following in silence no matter how fast I pushed.
Why?
The question sat heavy in my chest, but I already knew the answer.
I felt so guilty.
In a way, this made no different from Damon.
I was treating a mate horribly...
Almost imdiately, the woman entered carrying the sa wooden steaming bowl along with a wooden pitcher in her other hand.
"Here we are," she said, her tone deliberately cheerful as she approached.
She set the bowl on the bed beside and took the cup to fill it again, placing it on the chair which she pushed closer till it touched the edge of the bed.
I silently took the bowl. "Thank you." I looked up at her. "Very much."
Now that I looked closely, she appeared a bit more older.
"My na is Mira," she said, smiling gently as she patted down the front of her dress. "I realized I never properly introduced myself. You are?"
"Vi—Violet," I answered.
Her smile widened. "Nice to et you, Violet." She then gestured to the sowhat liquid food. "This is vegetable broth with so soft grains. Easy on the stomach. I’d start with this before moving to anything heavier."
I took the bowl carefully, the warmth seeping into my palms.
It slled good. Simple, but good.
The taste was mildly comforting, but my stomach cramped at the first swallow, and I had to pause.
"Slowly," Mira advised. "Your body needs ti to adjust."
Next thing, she was turning back towards the door. "I will be back in a few minutes. If you—"
"Please, wait."
She paused, turning back to look at .
I pushed aside the pressing question. It would seem insensitive for to ask if she was an Oga. What else would I even ask after...
"Where..." I swallowed, trying to work moisture back into my throat. "Is this the capital?"
"Ah... No. This is Brighthollow," she answered with a small smile, looking off to the side. "Well, more or less on the outskirts of it. This pack is right next to the Capital though. Just a few miles from the border actually."
The thought that we were this close to the Capital of Orpal surprised .
"And..." I looked at her properly now, taking in the simple dress, the kind eyes, the slightly wrinkled hands that were worn from work but clean. "I hope you don’t—I noticed you’re an Oga. I am sorry for the inconvenience, but I hope we didn’t scare you initially..." I shook my head. "I am sorry. That was rude, I—"
The woman’s expression shifted into sothing almost sad and understanding.
"It is no problem at all. I offer help to anyone in need." She smiled again. "And don’t worry about . I have a pretty strong granddaughter... Was your mother an Oga?"
"Yes." I averted my gaze as I lied, returning my attention back to the food. "She died a few years ago..."
Mira’s voice seed to soften. "Oh... I’m sorry, dear."
I nodded with a small smile. "I am fine, but thank you."
"Finish your broth," she said gently. "I’ll check on you in a bit. If you need anything, just... call out."
She left, closing the door softly behind her.
I sat there in the quiet room, the bowl warm in my hands.
Was I really being cruel even after what he did?
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